The 40 Books I’ve Read In 2014

Based on the successful of my post last year on the 26 books I read in 52 weeks I gave myself the same goal this year – read one book every-other week for the entire year. Imagine my surprise when I went back through my list and realized I blew past 26 books and, as of Sunday, I have read 40 books this year! If you have been around S & S for a while you know I love listening to books (here, here, and here) whether I am commuting to and from work, shopping, or really heading anywhere by myself but almost a book a week was shocking!

Of the more than three dozen books I have read this year, my favorite series has been Jams Patter’s Private. The books are based on a world renowned investigation company called Private, founded and run by a former CIA agent and each book just seemed to get better – however, I must say I found Private Games the most realistic in terms of how many things could go wrong at an Olympics Games and Private Berlin taught me the most eye-opening. You can read about all of the books here:

If you are not into the crime fighting thriller books, ala James Patterson and David Baldacci, there were two books this year I absolutely loved in addition to The Art Forger, which got it’s own post. The first was The Painted Girls by Cathy Marie Bechanan which I debated for ages whether or not it should get it’s own post but decided to include it in this recap instead. If you know me you know I love historical fiction so a book about two real events – the teenage crime in Paris in the 1880’s and the paintings and work of Edgar Degas woven into a spectacular but seemingly realistic tale was right up my ally. The second book I loved was Where’d You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple – I have no idea why it took over a year for me to get around to reading it but it was a perfect light, quick, easy read and I appreciated the plot twist.

Honestly, if you a member of your public library I strongly recommend seeing if they are linked or affiliated with OverDrive and if you can get involved! My library in New York City lets you borrow books (both ebooks and audiobooks) for 7 days, but my library in Florida gives you a full 14 days! All expect for a few of the books below I “read” through OverDrive:

The full list of books:

The Friday Night Knitting Club – by Kate Jacobs

Private – James Patterson

Private: #1 Suspect – James Patterson

Private London – James Patterson

Swimsuit – James Patterson

Private Games – James Patterson

Private Berlin – James Patterson

Postcard Killers – James Patterson

The Jester – James Patterson

The Quickie – James Patterson

11th Hour – James Patterson

12th of Never – James Patterson

Kill Alex Cross – James Patterson

The Murder of King Tut – James Patterson

Gone – James Patterson

The Drowning House – Elizabeth Black

In Sunlight and Shadow – Mark Heprin

Diary of a Mad Fat Girl – Stephanie McAfee

Defending Jacob – William Landay

Death Match – Lincoln Child

The Litiagors – John Grisham

The Lost Symbol – Dan Brown

The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo – Stieg Larson

The Light Between Oceans – M. L. Stedman

Hour Game – David Baldacci

Deliver Us From Evil – David Baldacci

Gideon’s Sword – Douglas Preston

The Painted Girls – Cathy Marie Bechanan

The Peach Keeper – Sarah Addison Allen

Stone Cold – David Baldacci

Now You See Her – James Patterson

The Target – James Patterson

The Brass Verdict – Michael Connelly

The Innocent Man – John Grisham

Unlucky 13 – James Patterson

Devine Justice – David Baldacci

First Family – David Baldacci

Where’d you Go, Bernadette – Maria Semple

The Heist – Janet Evanovich

Hotel on Corner of Bitter and Sweet – Jamie Ford

Forty books down and I do not plan on stopping any time soon. To my friends who say I am “cheating” because I am listening to them, well, I am absorbing literature and I think it counts! And just to be fair, I did not count my re-reading of every Harry Potter book – that would bring me to 47.

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I also love reading books but I’ve just read 30 book in 2014. Anyway, I still can read some books till 31th December! 😉

I have heard a lot of great things about James Patterson’s books — I am really going to have to check them out! Are they good to read as standalones or is it better to read them in a series? I might have to go see which one comes first and find it on eBay 😀 Great job on reading so many books this year! Do you have a Goodreads account? I would love to add you on there!

Wow! Good on you for getting through so many! Audiobooks are totally acceptable.. Any purists who tell you otherwise need to get with the times. One of the best things about life today is the way we are able to adapt learning and reading and educating to suit the needs of so many… I mean how long has the ‘people don’t all learn in the same way’ argument been around… Only now are we really able to take that concept and apply it in a meaningful way! It’s great! I personally love to read books but don’t mind listening to them if driving, it allows me to share the book with my partner (who hates reading and almost exclusively listens to audiobooks instead!)

I’m really impressed by this list. I try to read as much as possible but always seem to justify not doing so… Naughty! However recently I did fly to Australia and back and managed to knock out 3 books on the flights (Not That Kind of Girl – Lena Dunham, Road to Paradise – Paullina Simons, Gone Girl – Gillian Flynn). I highly recommend any Paullina Simons books by the way, they are fantastic.

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